The local community of Watsonia continues to be thrilled by the elongated process to build a town square that they never really wanted in the first place. As construction of the polarising project drags on into its third calendar year, residents are brimming with enthusiasm to try out the “bouldering wall”, amphitheatre, and “biodiversity area”. Surprisingly, very few local residents predict the area will become a weed-infested litter bowl within months of finally being completed. 

Speaking exclusively to The Watsonia Bugle, long-time Watsonia resident Brian Nelson insists the drawn-out process has done nothing but increase his excitement about enjoying the finished product. Nelson said, “Oh, it’s just been so exciting. You never know what’s going to happen next! I mean, when they first removed the main roundabout, I thought it would be annoying because you can’t do a U-turn when looking for a parking spot at the shops, but it actually means I get to explore ALL of Watsonia every time I pop up here just to grab a couple of things. That’s been a real bonus.”

Speaking of unexpected bonuses, fellow Watsonian Deborah Maleny claims the constantly changing pedestrian crossing near the world’s most expensive service station has increased her attention span and kept her mind fresh. She said, “The first couple of times that I almost got hit by a car while crossing the road I was shocked and upset, but now I see that it’s good for my memory and alertness. I don’t even have to do my daily sudoku now. Just attempting to cross Watsonia Road each day is enough to keep me sharp. It’s truly been a blessing in disguise.”

Speaking of traffic, local motorist Caden Reynolds has enjoyed the constantly-evolving car parking situation in the area. Reynolds said, “To be honest, the thing I’m most looking forward to is even less train station parking. They’ve already taken away the big one on the other side of the trainline, and now they’re reducing the spots on this side. I like to use that parking when I go to the footy on the weekend. But I guess I can now use that one extra spot they created at the cost of tens of thousands of dollars by realigned the perfectly good 45-degree spots out the front of the shops. So, you know, glass half full.”

Meanwhile, local father-of-two Ben Parsons is looking forward to taking his kids to the playground that will sit in the shadows of our giant powerlines. According to Parsons, “Just as Darryl Kerrigan used to say, powerlines are a great reminder of man’s ability to generate electricity. I look forward to staring up at the sky and admiring them while my kids play at the playground directly underneath those giant memory joggers. It’s gonna [sic] be awesome.”

However, not all Watsonia locals are glowing about the developing situation in their main food and shopping district. Darren Hughes remains sceptical about the long-term viability of the town square. Hughes said, “It’s all well and good to have these fancy renders with fake little people wandering around in the sunshine having a good time, but what’s it going to look like in a year’s time? They say there’ll be a ‘biodiversity area’. What’s that exactly? And who’s going to maintain that? The only biodiversity that will end up there will be the meeting of used cigarette butts, Coke cans, and empty potato chip packets.”

How do you feel about the town square project? Sound off in the comments section of our Facebook post to let us know.